Glimpses from Israel's Holocaust Survivors' Beauty Pageant 2016

Holocaust survivor, Carmela Ben Yehuda, 89, dances during the annual Holocaust survivors' beauty pageant in the Israeli city of Haifa October 30, 2016. Picture taken October 30, 2016.Reuters

The word Holocaust is a chilling reminder of genocidal cruelty unleashed by Adolf Hitler's Nazi Germany on about six million Jews. But, how do you feel if we tell you about the Holocaust survivors' beauty pageant?

Fourteen elderly women took to the ramp on October 30 to compete in a Holocaust survivors' pageant in the city of Haifa. The Holocaust survivors' beauty pageant is held in Israel and it honors those "who saw the horrors of World War Two when they were young".

Almost 300 Israeli Holocaust survivors registered for the competition and out of them only 14 finalists were selected for the contest.

A Holocaust survivor has her make-up done before the start of the annual Holocaust survivors' beauty pageant in the Israeli city of Haifa October 30, 2016. Picture taken October 30, 2016.Reuters

The organizers and the judges believe that this contest is more about recognition and respect rather than beauty.

Dressed in adorning clothes with beautifully applied make-up and styled hair, the Holocaust survivors walked down the red carpet waving and blowing kisses. They were also seen posing for pictures in front of the shutterbugs.

A contestant has nail polish applied before the start of the annual Holocaust survivors' beauty pageant in the Israeli city of Haifa October 30, 2016. Picture taken October 30, 2016.Reuters

This year Anna Grinis, a 75-year-old Russian-born Israeli woman, was crowned as the country's fifth "Miss Holocaust Survivor". The wife of Israeli prime minister, Sara Netanyahu, was seen crowning Grinis, who was just two days old when the World War II broke out.

"I have no words to describe how excited I am," Grinis told Walla news website after her crowning.

'When my mother was alive, she always used to tell me about this period when we ran way from (the German Army, near) Moscow...and there was nothing to eat there. We barely survived," Grinis told Daily Mail Online.